The victory was thwarted by the referee's error. The parties involved also acknowledged this.
Spain's "Sport" reported on the 17th (Korean time) that "former La Liga referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz admitted that his mistake cost FC Barcelona the league title."
Lahoz recently appeared on Spain's Mobiis and officially acknowledged his judgment error that occurred during the final match of the 2013-2014 season between Barcelona and Atletico Madrid.
The match was a decisive one for the league title, with Barcelona in a position to become champions if they won the game held at Camp Nou.
Early in the match, Barcelona took the lead with a goal from Alexis Sanchez, but Diego Godín's equalizer leveled the score for Atletico Madrid.
The controversial moment occurred in the second half.
Lionel Messi scored the winning goal, but the goal was disallowed due to Lahoz's offside decision. The issue was that the pass deflected off Atletico's Juanfran Torres, not Barcelona's Cesc Fabregas. Therefore, Messi's goal should have been recognized, but due to Lahoz's ruling, Barcelona was not awarded the score.
Ten years later, Lahoz reflected on the scene and remarked, "I made a mistake. Considering the importance of the match at the time, I just hope such a situation never happens again. Looking back now, it is clear that Juanfran touched the ball," admitting his error.
Lahoz explained the situation at the time, stating, "From my position, it was difficult to discern who the ball came from. I was convinced that Fabregas touched the ball, and I would stake my twenty fingers on it. This was a blatant mistake and effectively robbed Barcelona of their chance to win."
Lahoz reportedly acknowledged his mistake and apologized to the Barcelona players immediately after the match. Elvio Paolo Rosso, who was Barcelona's physical coach at the time, said in an interview with "TNT Sports" in 2016 that "after the match, the players were in tears in the locker room, and Lahoz came over to apologize. He expressed his regret by saying, 'I was wrong.'"
Had it not been for Lahoz's error, Barcelona likely would have won the La Liga title for the 2013-2014 season, making his late acknowledgment a moment of even greater regret for Barcelona fans.
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